Does anyone know of an Android app which enables price watch functionality ? Y'know, where you can load a product into a list and have it checked on an automated schedule, and notify you on reaching a Target price ?
Also maybe if you have any specific requirements you'd like to see in such an app ?
Teaser: I have indeed built such an app and while yet to put it up on the play store am looking for ideas to implement…..
It's been a BIG learning curve
Thanks do you find it can pickup and 'watch' pretty much any site you want or is it limited in some ways ?
I'm aware theres a few available on the play store but am looking for actual users who have tried them or would like such an app
Also maybe if you have any specific requirements you'd like to see in such an app ?
Teaser: I have indeed built such an app and while yet to put it up on the play store am looking for ideas for improvement…..
I don't use an Android app for any of this currently, but for me:
It seems to me that you can be either product focused (makes sense if you are thinking of, for example, electronics, or any other one-off type purchase), or you can be store focused (makes sense if you are thinking of, for example, groceries, or any other purchase that you make regularly).
You need to decide up front if you are focusing on one or the other, or even both, but the underlying database and organisation might make that difficult to achieve..
I don't bother with one-off purchase price trackers, since I can easily stay on top of that one product and what price I am expecting, what looks like a good deal etc. If I am in no rush, then I likely wait for a good sale at a preferred vendor, and buy then.
For regular purchases, you need to be able to surface good deals across a reasonable number of specific stores - probably updating daily (if possible), and surfacing deals in specific stores that the user identifies (since we would not travel too far to buy low value, regular purchases). It's no good telling me there is a great deal on a grocery item at a store that is 20km away when there are fifty grocery stores inside that distance - I'm never likely to be going there, and the purchase won't justify a special trip.
Personally, I won't install some random software on any of my machines (phone, PC etc etc) - nothing personal, but how do I know you are at all competent? Installing random apps is like going back to the nineties when every man and his dog wanted you to install their (Windows) application on your machine.
If you have a web site that does it, then I will happily give it a go, and if you want to then build an app that displays the web info, then go for it, but I would never use that myself - too much risk of a crappy app compromising my kit.
Thanks for your great reply. I have indeed built an app and I run/test it on a spare phone I have. When it's installed the phone will run a security check on it . It enables you to paste an addy for a product into the app, then enter a 'target' price. When that item reaches that price, (goes on special or whatever), the app notifies you. You can then clik a button on the app to take you to the site. Currently I have my app watching prices on some local stores such as
Heathcote Appliances - a random phone case (just to test the app)
Briscoes - A type of piillow my Wife want's but wont buy until the price drops
Fresh choice - coffee I like but I want the price to drop before I buy
Amazon Au - The same coffee (Moccona !) Which I've bought from there before when it's cheap
TradeMe - A car I like !
SuperCheap - oil for my car. The oil is VERY expensive so I've got it on watch for when the price drops
Repco - the same oil
As you can see the app enables me to keep an eye on products I do indeed use/purchase quite regularly , (and others like the car which I'd just maybe consider buying if the price drops). In this way I don't have to keep checking on things. Once I've input an item I can forget it until the app notifies me it's reached my target price. The price check function can be set to several different time frames - hourly/daily/weekly.
The ONLY permissions the app asks for or requires is the permission to notify you of an event.
It obviously uses the internet capability of the device to check prices.
I may never release this app to the PlayStore and only keep/use it myself or give it to friends to use but I posted it here so that perhaps others could give me suggestions on what they think would be useful etc. So I DO indeed value and appreciate those thoughts you posted.
Fair enough. For me, I would never trust anything that required installing on my kit, unless I realistically had no choice, but if somehow it is easier, from your perspective, to program for, say, Android then I totally understand.
Looking at, say, the coffee, I think you would need to be able to restrict it to one (or maybe a few) specific Fresh Choice stores, since they might have different prices in other Fresh Choice stores? Not sure if that actually applies to Fresh Choice, but it definitely does for PNS, NW, and 4SQ.
Good luck!
when a product is added that item is listed using the web addy of the product you have looked up. So for me I'm checking local stores for my Coffee, (except for Amazon Au), and i have each store listed. Fresh Choice, Woolworths, New World, for example. Whichever comes up with the goods at the right time is the one I'll go visit. I can set any 'target price' I want. So say I don't want to pay more than $10 for my coffee I'll set that as the target price for each store .
As for when you say " I would never trust anything that required installing on my kit" TBH this seems a little odd. Do you mean that you NEVER install an apps other than those the device comes with pre-installed ? I personally am VERY picky about apps I install so I do understand your view that they can be 'doubtful'. I ONLY install apps from Google Playstore on the phone I use as my daily. i don't want someone hacking into my bank apps for example.
However in order to get an app listed on the PlayStore I'll have to get it tested by 12 independant users. I'll harrass my friends lol. I think they trust me. I"m not suggesting you should even consider trusting any NON Playstore app.
The reason I posted this chat today is to get some feedback from people about what they want in an app. So I really appreciate your thoughts !
@Drcspy: You quoted me as saying:
" I would never trust anything that required installing on my kit"
whereas I actually said:
I would never trust anything that required installing on my kit, unless I realistically had no choice
Quite disingenuous of you to deliberately avoid the second half of the sentence, and then for you to go on and say:
TBH this seems a little odd. Do you mean that you NEVER install an apps other than those the device comes with pre-installed ?
Obviously your interpretation is way off base, based on my statement. If it wasn't your intention, then perhaps best to try reading things a few times if comprehension is a weak spot for you.
I get that you are upset that people won't just trust you, and like I said right up front, it's 'nothing personal', but there is just no way for you to demonstrate in advance that what you produce will be good quality. It's the same for every developer, single-handed in their mum's basement, or part of a large team, we can only know that something was reasonably solid and secure after it has been proven in the wild for some time.
However, you do you, and I still wish you luck, but I do advise that you try to be less emotional, and more objective about it.
@Alan6984: I do advise that you try to be less emotional, and more objective about it.
I get that you are upset that people won't just trust you,
try reading things a few times if comprehension is a weak spot for you.
How kind and observant of you to notice these shortcomings of mine and offer some lovely platitudes.
How kind and observant of you to notice these shortcomings of mine and offer some lovely platitudes.
No problem at all.
The misquote thing was an easy mistake to make.
There's lots of ways to do this and it doesn't have to be an app, can just run something on a Raspberry Pi in your homelab.
https://github.com/dgtlmoon/changedetection.io
https://onwebchange.com/
https://sken.io/
https://visualping.io/pricing?plan=free
https://pagecrawl.io/pricing
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.webalert
I use karma?